About Us

CodyCares for Kids Inc., (CodyCares) a 501(c)(3) originally founded in 2000, provides educational & mental-health-counseling services primarily to teens and young adults; it is referred to as Life Advisement.

Our mission and organizational goal is to provide youth participants, in Brooklyn, with the tools and resources necessary to discover their gifts and talents, and set goals to become successful, emotionally healthy, conscientious, and responsible adults through peer leadership development.

CodyCares’ will continue to reach our mission for 2018 through the following programs:

Individual Life Advisement Sessions

Group Life Advisement Sessions

Teen Hall Meetings (THM)

Career & Higher Education Fair (CHEF)

Resource Workshops

History & Background

CodyCares was founded in 2000 by Dr. Jackie Cody. As a New York City teacher, Dr. Cody was on the forefront of a rising disconnect between students and their guidance counselors. Daily, her interactions with students gave an insight into the struggles many low-income individuals have in balancing academic pursuits and the innumerable distractions of their home environment. Many of her students came from households reeling from the consequences of drug and alcohol addictions, these students suffered both academically and socially. Dr. Cody took an interest in listening to her charges, identifying underlying issues and finding solutions that others were either ill equipped or reluctant to give. The children responded positively, and soon word spread amongst students to ‘speak to Cody, she cares’. That moniker had a lasting effect and it subsequently propelled Dr. Cody to create CodyCares.

CodyCares started as an organization that was funded by Dr. Cody, to help teens to discover their gifts and talents, understand their worth, and equip them with the tools to be successful in academia and life. Over the last 17-years, CodyCares’ has provided services to over 15,000 teens and young adults from mostly low-socio-economic communities in Brooklyn such as East New York, Brownsville, Bedford Stuyvesant, and Canarsie. This is done through an eclectic-mental-health-educational-social-service-approach called Life Advisement. “Life Advisement” is a form of counseling Dr. Cody derived by taking an eclectic approach of listening and understanding the needs of an individual, and tailoring the counseling session to directly fit the needs of that specific individual.

Programs

CodyCares' Programs provide youth participants with the tools necessary to be successful by enabling them to discover their gifts and talents, to set plans and goals for their lives. In short, individuals with a plan, and positive self-worth, are less likely to commit negative acts, upon themselves or others, that will derail them from achieving their dreams. Thus, the direct benefit to our communities will be enhanced student achievement, raised graduation rates, less violence, and more peer leaders who can make a greater impact within their own communities; thus promoting a domino effect of success.

Individual Life Advisement Sessions:

CodyCares’ Individual Life Advisement Sessions are provided year around by appointment only. These highly confidential sessions are specifically tailored to fit the needs of the client. These individual sessions are the foundation of our services, where we provide the tools for each person to be empowered, successful, and productive individuals.

Group Life Advisement Sessions:

CodyCares’ Life Advisement Sessions are convened when multiple clients are referred or request the same services such as: Anger Management; Financial Management; Parenting Skills; Finance Management; Tutoring and Study Skills; and other Life Management Skills.

Teen Hall Meetings:

Teen Hall Meetings (THM) are forums used to equip our clients with the tools needed to become peer leaders. The teens are placed through a rigorous program that teaches them to self-assess, identify, and address problems in their life which hampers personal growth. After learning these skills; the young adults under the direction and close supervision of Life Advisors, and the Program Director, become peer life advisors, and apply it to hosting their own THM. This process has had a proven success rate mainly because the peer-to-peer interaction encourages growth amongst our teens. The practice of listening without judgement, helping another individual: see his/her problem, and critically thinking about potential possibilities helps to further the reach of the program and the ideals of CodyCares.

Career & Higher Education Fair:

CodyCares’ Career & Higher Education Fair (CHEF) is a forum to help ensure that colleges, universities, financial services, jobs, internships, armed forces, mentors, and community programs get their information directly into the hands of high school graduates. Many high school students are under-informed about their post-high school options, the processes necessary to guide and assist them towards furthering their education (e.g. SAT/ACT testing, university application process, funding options such as grants and scholarships), and the resources available to help them succeed. CHEF 2015 took place at Kings Plaza Shopping Mall, and CHEF 2016 & 2017 took place at Ingersoll Community Center.

Resource Workshops:

CodyCares’ Resource Workshops are created as a result of the needs of clients and participants. These workshops provide specific information, or refer to workshops that are being held in a particular subject area. For example, CodyCares’ partnering organizations host specific workshops such as, but not limited to: Mental Health Awareness, Job Fairs, High School Fairs, Entrepreneurial Prep, Scholarships, College Quest Awareness, Yoga, Gender specific empowerment courses – Rite of Passage: Male Mentoring, Female Mentoring, Financial awareness, Coding and Computer Skills, and several other workshops that equip participants with the information necessary to succeed.

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